Sacramento Awash In Leadership from San Mateo County

Thomas Paine, he of the “Common Sense” blog (O.K., it would’ve been a blog if the Internet had existed in 1776) is credited with coining the phrase: “Lead, follow or get out of the way.” It appears that in the California Legislature, many will be following leaders from San Mateo County.

With the announcement of leadership and committee assignments by Assembly Speaker John Perez  and State Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, the representatives from San Mateo County are in some lofty and powerful positions. That’s great for us (the editorial ‘us’) as despite the rainbows-and-lollipops we get from Sacto – it’s still hardball politics on a day-to-day basis so the bigger bat you wield, the farther you’ll hit the ball (to finish the baseball metaphor).

From San Mateo County, Jerry Hill was confirmed as Chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus. Kevin Mullin and Phil Ting are two of the 39 new members of the Assembly. Perhaps more significantly, they were also appointed to leadership positions as Mullin was tabbed as Assistant Speaker pro Tempore, while Ting was named Democratic Caucus Chair. (Political Trivia: That’s Jerry Hill’s old Assembly post.) And re-elected to the Assembly was Rich Gordon, who was named Chair of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Caucus.

Gordon was also chosen to be Chair of the Assembly Business, Professions and Consumer Protection Committee.  What do they do? The official state website sayeth: “Primary jurisdictions are consumer protection; Department of Consumer Affairs occupational licensing (medical and non-medical), including private postsecondary and vocational education; creation and elimination of regulatory agencies, boards and commissions; governmental organization, efficiency and cost control; Administrative Procedure Act and Office of Administrative Law; Department of General Services, state procurement, and printing contracts; state and local property acquisition law; charitable solicitations; product labeling (excluding agriculture and medical); weights and measures, including accuracy of product pricing.” Whew!

As to committees, all three (Gordon, Mullin and Ting) were appointed to the powerful Budget Committee, Revenue and Taxation Committee; and, the aforementioned Biz, Prof & Consumer Pro (tres cool shorthand, no?). Individually, Mullin’s on Budget Subcommittee No. 4 on State Administration; Local Government; and, Public Employees, Retirement and Social Security. Gordon also sits on the Local Government Committee and Budget Subcommittee No. 3 on Resources and Transportation. Ting, meanwhile, will see action on the Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Education Finance and the Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committee.

On the Senate committee side, both Hill and Sen. Leland Yee were named to the Business, Professions & Economic Development Committee. Hill was confirmed as Chair of the influential Banking and Financial Institutions Committee and is a member of six other high-profile Senate committees: Appropriations; Budget & Fiscal Review; Budget Subcommittee (No. 4) on State Administration and General Government; Energy, Utilities and Communications; and, Labor and Industrial Relations.

Yee was named Chair of the Human Services Committee and a member of the Elections and Constitutional Amendments and Public Employment and Retirement Committees as well as Chair of the Select Committee on California's Public Records & Open Meeting Laws; Chair of the Select Committee on Asian Pacific Islander Affairs; and –yep – Chair of the Select Committee on Bay Area Sustainable Development & Economic Progress.

(That latter gig could play a very prominent role as local government disguises growth control and social engineering under the ‘effort’ to reduce greenhouse gases.)

And your “Gee Whiz” factoids: Democrats will control both legislative houses by a supermajority for the first time since 1883, and Ting and Mullin are part of the largest freshman class of state solons since 1966.